How we can eat our landscapes | Pam Warhurst | Summary and Q&A

TL;DR

This content discusses the Incredible Edible movement and how it has transformed communities through food, empowering individuals to create a different way of living.

Key Insights

• 🌱 People in Toman have transformed their town by implementing "propaganda gardening" and creating an edible landscape, attracting vegetable tourists from around the world.
• 🌍 Food has become a unifying language that cuts across age, income, and culture, allowing people to rethink their everyday lives, interact differently, and find a new way of living.
• 💡 Incredible Edible Toman started with a simple game plan focused around three plates: a Community Plate for everyday life, a Learning Plate for education, and a Business Plate for supporting local businesses.
• 🌱 Incredible Edible Toman has successfully empowered people to take action, reinvent their community, and build resilience without a formal strategy or waiting for permission.
• 💚 Incredible Edible Toman believes in the power of small actions and encourages personal responsibility and kindness toward each other and the environment.
• 👥 Incredible Edible Toman has inspired other communities in England, as well as communities in America, Japan, and New Zealand, to replicate their model and create positive change through local growing.
• 💰 Incredible Edible Toman has had a positive impact on the local economy by supporting local producers, increasing market sales, and enhancing Local Economic confidence.
• 🌱 Incredible Edible Toman calls for actions such as creating edible landscapes, incorporating food sites in city plans, prioritizing environmental education in schools, and encouraging local governments to support community gardening initiatives.

Transcript

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Questions & Answers

Q: What is the purpose of the propaganda gardening initiative in Toman?

The purpose of the propaganda gardening initiative in Toman is to find a unifying language that can cut across age, income, and culture. By focusing on food and creating community actions around it, the initiative aims to empower people, build resilience, and reinvent the community.

Q: How did the community in Toman start the propaganda gardening initiative?

The community in Toman started the propaganda gardening initiative by coming up with a game plan around three plates: the Community Plate, the Learning Plate, and the Business Plate. They presented this plan at a public meeting without seeking permission or writing reports. The response from the meeting was overwhelming, and the initiative gained momentum from there.

Q: What are some examples of the activities carried out as part of the propaganda gardening initiative in Toman?

As part of the propaganda gardening initiative, the community in Toman engaged in various activities. They started with a seed swap and transformed an area of land into a herb garden. They also created vegetable beds in front of the railway station car park, the health center, and even in front of the police station. Additionally, they designed artistic raised beds to educate people about what is growing there, and they launched the Incredible Edible green route, which takes people through the town to different food-related sites.

Q: How did the community in Toman promote local food producers and increase local economic confidence?

The community in Toman promoted local food producers and boosted local economic confidence through simple actions. They provided blackboards with the "Incredible Edible" label to market traders, increasing sales and creating a sense of community. They launched the "Every Egg Matters" campaign, highlighting local egg sellers on a map and encouraging people to support them. These initiatives increased demand for local products and inspired farmers to expand their flocks and diversify their offerings. In a survey, almost half of the food traders in Toman reported that their bottom line had increased due to the initiatives.

Q: How has the propaganda gardening initiative in Toman spread beyond the local community?

The propaganda gardening initiative in Toman has spread beyond the local community, with over 30 towns in England adopting the Incredible Edible model. It has also gained recognition globally, with communities in America, Japan, and New Zealand incorporating elements of the initiative into their own local growing efforts. The initiative's approach is replicable and does not require significant funding or bureaucratic processes. It simply requires a shift in mindset and a willingness to support and empower communities through local food initiatives.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Incredible Edible is a movement that promotes growing food in public spaces to inspire positive actions and community engagement.

• The movement aims to unify people across different ages, incomes, and cultures through a shared language of food and encourage them to think and interact differently.

• Incredible Edible has been successful in creating edible landscapes, implementing educational programs, and supporting local businesses, leading to increased local economic confidence and replication of the movement in 30 towns in England and internationally.